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HAL LONE PINE
was not quite in the same league, but he was a first-rate
performer on stage and disc. Born Harold J. Breau, in the small Maine community
of Pea Cove in 1916, he had his nickname bestowed upon him in his youth by a
Red Indian friend. Before the war he had his own daily radio show in Bangor,
Maine and his growing popularity led to nationwide tours, during one of which
in 1940, he met his future life partner in marriage and song, Betty Cody. They
were both signed by RCA and their regional popularity peaked in the early fifties.
He died in 1977. The lively
Honey, Honey Mine
features Billy Mure and George
Barnes on guitars.
JESSE ROGERS
offers a testimony for the remedial properties of the
patentmedicine, ‘Hadacol’, a panacea for all known ills which was endorsed by
many show-biz figures. The continued popularity of Hadacol resulted in a veritable
slew of tongue-in-cheek recordings extolling its virtues. Rogers’ offering is a
solid, driving version of a song written and first recorded for Mercury by Bill
Nettles. Jesse was a second cousin of the Blue Yodeler, Jimmie Rodgers and was
born and raised in rural Mississippi. He actually had two recording careers with
Victor; in the mid-thirties, a four year spell on their Bluebird label produced over
forty recorded sides. Ironically, his clone-style to Jimmie Rodgers was ultimately
his downfall, so when his contract expired he repaired to a period of touring and
radio. The boom years after the second war heralded a revival of Jesse’s fortunes.
Having shed the last vestiges of his ‘Blue Yodeler’ image he recorded some
Western material for Sonora, Cowboy and Apollo before resigning with RCA
Victor in 1946. He launched their resurrected ‘Bluebird’ series with
Hadacol
Boogie
(32-0001) and
Wedding Bells
(32-0002). BillyWilliamson and Billy Mure
are featured here.
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